Run & Hide by Beatrix Hollow

14

Fuck, she passed out. I grunted in annoyance as I stomped towards her, bending down and rolling her so that her face wasn’t in the dirt. Her breasts were barely contained by the clothing she had on. Her legs were entirely bare.

I swept my hand down her cheek, feeling how soft she was. My eyes dipped back to her chest and I reached towards her ample breasts, excited to see how they felt gripped in my hand. I hadn’t had a woman in… well, trying to figure it out was depressing.

An explosion of pain rattled my cheek and suddenly I was face down in the dirt, pulling myself up on my hands while I shook my head out, trying to get rid of the ringing. My head craned to the side and anger washed over me as her fuck boy stood there in front of her like her white knight. White knight my ass. I was the one who just saved her, not that she knew that.

“What did you fucking do to her?” He snarled and I sighed, getting up on my feet and taking the time to brush off my clothes. “Answer me you creepy fuck!” He shouted.

Well, if he insisted. I spoke into his head and he clutched the sides of his skull and screamed. A muted laugh rolled over me as he fell to his knees, snarling.

Before he got back up he slid over to the girl, bending over her.

“Ava. Ava, are you okay?” He swept the hair from her face and she sighed in content but didn’t wake up. So, Ava was her name… He shot a glare over his shoulder at me and I squinted, trying to get a good look at his eyes. They looked different now.

I jerked back in shock as he leapt at me. His body rippled and his appearance changed before he crashed into me, taking me down. I gripped his shoulders, trying to hold him back as he attempted to bite my face off. His mouth was filled with needlepoint teeth.

Well, fuck me. One of his hands swiped out and he slashed at my face. I hissed in pain as I felt claws damage me. I jerked my knee up and he grunted as I smashed his balls. Then I kicked him off me as he was momentarily weakened.

“Fuck!” He spat out, gripping himself between the legs as I scrambled up and pulled out my gun. I kicked dirt at his face for good measure and he sucked in a breath, slamming his eyes shut.

He’d need to learn that I played dirty. One didn’t survive all this time in the human world without being a sly sonofabitch. By the time he looked back up, I had the long barrel of a .44 magnum aimed at his temple. Feeling lucky, punk?

“What kind of monster needs a gun?” He said in disgust, eyes red in irritation. I snorted in amusement then talked to him again, making him yell and grab his head as he fell to the ground.

“Fuck you!” He snarled. Ah, he must have actually understood me that time. The sound of a broken twig had us both snapping our gazes to the girl, Ava, who was staring at us. Her eyes looked glassy and unfocused as if she wasn’t really awake.

Needle-teeth jerked his face away from her, hiding himself behind his hair. Didn’t matter, she’d already passed out again. I sighed and he looked back around tentatively then frowned at her slumped body.

“Do you ever talk?” He huffed out then held his hand up swiftly. ”Nevermind.” I stood there, holding my gun towards his head. He sat there, glaring at me. A moment later his skin rippled and he looked human again. I tilted my head to the side. When did monsters start coming in pretty boy models?

Whatever the case, I didn’t like shapeshifting monsters. They were always the most conniving type of beasts. There was something vulpine about their fake human face that made me feel icky.

“Let me guess, you like Ava,” he said.

I shrugged.

“Bullshit,” he snorted, shaking his head. Well, he had me there. The girl practically glowed. She’d called out to me, though I wasn’t sure how. Her mind had drawn me in over miles, pulling me in as if she’d hooked her finger into my cheek and tugged.

The next thing I knew I had been standing in that nearby campground. The damned campground, where the hunters plucked their victims from. And there she had been, her skin appearing golden with a subdued glow. My eyes could see things other creatures couldn’t. What I'd seen from her was something beautiful. She was like a lily in bloom, stamen weighted down heavy with ample pollen.

The antennae on my head twitched under my hat as I thought about it. She was special.

Not to mention, I hadn’t had pussy in centuries. Right now her tits were still spilling from her top and her ass was barely contained. I wanted her bouncing up and down in my lap as soon as possible. I could imagine her tits heaving up and down and me burying my face in them while I gripped her round ass, helping her up and down. Giddy up, girly.

“She attracts things. Ghosts, monsters…” he trailed off and I flipped my duster open and shoved the gun back in its holster.

“Run along, boy,” I signed with my hands. He just looked at me in confusion. I started to talk to him again in my voice.

“Stop! Shit!” He yelled out, wincing.

“What are you? Mothman?” He asked and I shrugged but then nodded. I’d gone by more than one name. The humans used to call me the God of the Appalachia. They used to worship me, erecting totems that had decayed away with time. Humans were like that too, coming and going. Living and dying. Rising and falling.

It was no business of mine to be part of their lives. So why did I feel like I needed to be part of hers?

“No wings,” he commented and I snorted in amusement. I watched him swallow and eye Ava. He was agitated and wanted her away from me. That much I could tell. Too bad I wasn’t giving her up. Even if I didn’t understand why I wasn’t giving her up.

“You scare her,” he said in accusation. Was that supposed to turn me away? I huffed, unimpressed. I’d known a few women that could be convinced to let go of their fear with the right motivation. And I had the right type of motivation. I smiled and he blanched. Most people screamed when I smiled so I guess he had that going for him.

I made a shooing motion and he looked offended, jumping up to his feet.

“I’m not letting you have her. She’s mine,” he snarled. Looked like he needed a reminder who wore the big boy pants around here. I did. Because I had a fucking .44 magnum that could splinter his skull like it was soft, decayed wood.

“It’s Mark!” Someone yelled from the trail, startling the shit out of me. Fuck, I hadn’t noticed anyone else. I pressed my hand to my chest as my heart thumped out of my ribcage. Needle-teeth started to laugh at my reaction, the little shit.

“Oh my god, I think he's dead!” The voice came again. I grunted in agitation.

“Caspian! Ava!” Voices called out. I eyed the two people I was with. So his name was Caspian.

“Bye-bye,” he said in satisfaction and I huffed. He was right. I wasn’t about to get in a fight with a whole group of humans, plus whatever disgusting shapeshifting creature he was. It was tedious fishing my bullets back out of people's skulls. All that walnut cracking took significant effort. Also, I didn’t feel like hefting dead men into the water all night.

“I’ll be back for her,” I signed but he didn’t understand so I told him with my voice, happy to make sure he got the memo as he hissed in pain.

“No, you won’t. She’s mine,” he snarled—a broken record. I blinked at him and didn’t bother explaining—trying to say that much might make his brain bleed. He’d have to stay oblivious to the fact that they were being hunted.

Of course, I could have written him a note but I didn’t like his freaky fake face. Plus, I was still harboring jealousy that he got to have sex with Ava earlier while I was left with a bicentennial celebration of blue balls. My gaze shot to her and I sighed in appreciation. She was my flame.

Caspian turned towards the trail, cupping his hands to his mouth.

“We’re here!” He called out and I took that as my cue to leave, moving fast enough that by the time he turned around, I was gone. It’s not like I wanted to stick around for a thank you. The idiot had no idea I’d just rescued her from the hunters. The hunters likely saw me do it too. Which I knew was going to bite me in the ass.